Chronology Current Month Current Thread Current Date
[Year List] [Month List (current year)] [Date Index] [Thread Index] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Date Prev] [Date Next]

Re: [Phys-L] Sea-level rise - legislated?




I found a story that explains the situation in detail...
http://www.nccoast.org/Article.aspx?k=b965eb03-1d87-4284-9bfb-46d8b3eb67fb

I'm afraid I do not quite understand what was legislated and why it was
legislated. Are you saying that someone wrote into law a particular
linear formula for sea-level rise? As far as I have seen, the sea level
rise looks fairly linear over a couple of decades, but the longer term
trend looks more exponential.


"... outlawed any mathematical model for sea level rise that isn't
linear and based solely upon their prescribed historical data set..."

I guess that's the difference between maths and science, in both
areas laws are human constructions of meaning, and in both areas
people have biases, but in science, ultimately, we require those
human constructions to pass tests against new data whereas
mathematicians (and politicians it seems) can have whatever laws they
wish.

(tongue-somewhat-in-cheek)

Best wishes

Keith


For what it's worth - the Great Legislators here in North Carolina
> have now outlawed any mathematical model for sea level rise that
isn't linear and based solely upon their prescribed historical data
> set.
.
At 11:35 PM -0400 7/1/12, Jeff Bigler wrote:
If the Texachusylvania Republicratic party had passed a law defining
g
to be 9.8000000 m/s^2 everywhere in the universe, that would be
different.
--
_______________________________________________
Forum for Physics Educators
Phys-l@mail.phys-l.org
http://www.phys-l.org/mailman/listinfo/phys-l

_______________________________________________
Forum for Physics Educators
Phys-l@mail.phys-l.org
http://www.phys-l.org/mailman/listinfo/phys-l


--

Dr. Keith S. Taber

Editor: Chemistry Education Research and Practice
(Published by the Royal Society of Chemistry)
http://www.rsc.org/publishing/journals/rp/about.asp


Book Reviews Editor: Studies in Science Education
http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals/titles/03057267.asp


Senior Lecturer in Science Education
Science Education Centre
University of Cambridge Faculty of Education
184 Hills Road
Cambridge CB2 8PQ
United Kingdom
http://www.educ.cam.ac.uk/staff/taber.html
https://camtools.cam.ac.uk/access/wiki/site/~kst24/index.html

_______________________________________________
Forum for Physics Educators
Phys-l@mail.phys-l.org
http://www.phys-l.org/mailman/listinfo/phys-l



_______________________________________________
Forum for Physics Educators
Phys-l@mail.phys-l.org
http://www.phys-l.org/mailman/listinfo/phys-l